We’re pleased to announce that we are now a 3M Select Gold Partner. See below for the full article featured on www.automotiveworld.com

[Article www.automotiveworld.com]

3M accredits Leading Edge Signage and Graphics as Select Gold Partner

3M, the science-based technology company, has appointed UK-nationwide expert Leading Edge Signage and Graphics, which has locations in West Yorkshire, Livingston and London, as a 3M Select Gold Partner.

Leading Edge has trusted 3M films and product support for its vehicle wrapping and fleet graphics activities since inception in 2007. Gold Partner status confirms the company’s proficiency using the materials on vehicles ranging from private cars and light vans, to commercial vehicles including large trucks as well as buses and coaches. As a national signage and graphics expert, Leading Edge has a broad palette of skills that also include signage design, office graphics and creation of braille and tactile signs, using a wide range of media, and in-house facilities including large-format printers up to 3.2m wide.

Matthew Evans, Managing Director of Leading Edge commented, “The superior quality of 3M materials and processes provides the perfect foundation for us to deliver outstanding services to our customers. Now, as a Gold Partner, we are recognised by 3M as one of the most capable, most technically advanced graphics specialists in the market. We will continue to work with 3M to push the boundaries and deliver innovative solutions to all our customers. 3M is always our product of choice.”

Pen Webley, marketing team leader at 3M, said, “The 3M Select programme is based on globally harmonised standards. As our latest Gold Partner, Leading Edge has now joined a select group of world-class experts that are proven to deliver unparalleled quality and value to brand owners.”

The global 3M Select initiative qualifies partners against a set of 15 criteria, which cover standards of equipment and quality of work, and examine aspects such as the production environment, materials storage, adherence to a 3M Code of Conduct, execution of a Matched Component System (MCS), quality control, and staff training. Moreover, 3M supports the programme with its MCS Warranty, which is widely regarded as one of the most comprehensive in the industry. The warranty covers not only the film but all elements including ink, adhesive and protective coating, thereby guaranteeing that the entire graphic will maintain its appearance and deliver long-term all-weather durability. The programme in the UK and Ireland has two levels: Platinum and Gold. Currently, four companies are qualified as 3M Select Platinum Partners and nine including Leading Edge as 3M Select Gold Partners.

Find out how our new facility in Livingston now gives us greater flexibility to meet demanding deadlines and has given us the opportunity to recruit new staff to join our growing team. See below for the full article featured on www.sbnn.co.uk

[Article www.sbnn.co.uk]

Yorkshire signage company’s Livingston expansion creates 8 jobs

Leading Edge Signage and Graphics, who are based in Gomersal, West Yorkshire, has opened a new office in Livingston that has created 8 new jobs.

Located in Brucefield Industry Park, this will be the second manufacturing location in the UK for Leading Edge, whose clients include McDonald’s, Card Factory, Bet Fred and Kwik Fit.

Matthew Evans, founder and managing director of Leading Edge, which designs and produces signage and display graphics for the retail, hospitality and construction sectors, has grown the company’s staff base to 65 since 2008.

Matthew said: “We are now independently delivering on contracts across the whole of the UK, including Northern Ireland. Our new facility in Livingston gives us greater flexibility to meet these demanding deadlines with our growing team able to fulfil on delivery and fitting.

Continued investment in new equipment continues our policy of keeping our services in-house, which ensures full autonomy on every project and is helping us consistently win national contracts.”

Thanks to a Scottish Regional Selective Assistance Grant, Leading Edge have purchased new ‘flat bed’ printing machinery for its Livingston facility, which will support their roll-to- roll offering.

At Leading Edge we have recently purchased new ‘flatbed’ machinery for our Livingston facility, thanks to a Scottish Regional Selective Assistant grant.

Find out how this will enable us to grow our business, in the full article featured on www.scottish-enterprise.com below…

[Article www.scottish-enterprise.com]

Are you planning significant capital expenditure in the coming year? Our Regional Selective Assistance grants could help make your plans a reality.

If you’re a small to medium-sized business based in Scotland you could be eligible for a Scottish Enterprise Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) grant starting at £20,000 to over £250,000.

The grant can be used to:
• Help increase your workforce or secure existing jobs
• Support the purchase of new equipment to keep up with demand for a product
• Get support to improve efficiencies in your business – you may have an idea on how to do this but need some funding to make it happen
• Help sell your products in new markets or abroad to make your global ambitions a reality

We invest £20 million each year on Regional Selective Assistance to ensure that Scotland’s economy remains globally competitive.

How do we do this? By helping all sizes of companies at all stages of development, across Scotland’s key business sectors to help improve their productivity and secure and grow their workforce.

Fantastic opportunity for small businesses
The Regional Selective Assistance grant is a fantastic opportunity for small businesses.

Thanks to a Regional Selective Assistance grant of £37,300, Leading Edge Creative Design Ltd, a specialist in creative graphics display, will be able to purchase new ‘flatbed’ printing machinery for its Livingston facility. The company has itself invested £186,675.

Overall investment will create four full-time positions and support delivery of existing UK contracts for McDonalds, Card Factory and Goodyear Tyres.

The company currently services these contracts via their facility based in West Yorkshire, so it will ultimately save on transport costs too.

The new machinery will also give Leading Edge the opportunity to compete on a larger scale and further expand its Livingston operations to service future UK-wide contracts.

“The Regional Selective Assistance grant is a fantastic opportunity for small businesses,” said Matthew Evans, managing director at Leading Edge Creative Design Ltd, “and I would highly recommend company owners finding out if they are eligible.”

“We’re very grateful for the support we’ve received from Scottish Enterprise – we feel very valued and welcome in the Scottish business community,” Matthew added “For us this is an exciting time as we expand our production in Livingston which will hopefully make us more competitive when obtaining new UK wide contracts.”

If you’re a business owner, then you’ll definitely want to get an increased number of customers for your business to bloom to its full potential. It’s true that getting customers is dependent upon the quality of the product and services provided. However, there are so many other factors, which have effect on a business of which visibility is the key factor. First you need to increase visibility of your business, which in turn will help you to grow your business.

When you’re walking around you’ll see lots of different signs all competing for attention. The ones that tend to really catch the eye though are usually the ones that use 3D lettering or LED lighting and illumination.

Illuminated signage has grown in popularity and this is due to many reasons including the affordability of illumination technology and the advantage that illumination has over traditional forms of signage.

Illuminated signage can be used both internally and externally. Visible in any weather conditions, even in low-lit areas and at night, illuminated signage has several advantages over other forms of signage.

1. Stand out from the crowd – Streets have lots of businesses competing for attention, an illuminated sign can help you get the edge over your competition.
2. Illuminated signage is visible 24 hours a day – Regular signage can fade into the background after dark, however illuminated signage is even more visible at night. This is great for businesses that are open later or who want advertising 24 hours.
3. Reinforce Your Brand – Good shop front signs can reinforce your brand and should display the quality and professionalism of your business. First impressions are made in seconds.

The question to ask when looking at new signage is ‘What are other businesses around you using, and will you be able to stand out enough without some illumination?’